DMZ #62Review

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By Jesse Schedeen

It's been a long time since DMZ readers have seen much of the series' protagonist, Matty Roth. With the book ending at issue #72, it seems Brian Wood is trying to put everything in order and pay final respects to the book's sizable supporting cast. Hence the side-story focus of recent arcs like "Collective Punishment" and the first two issues of "Free States Rising". That all changes in issue #62 as Matty steps back into the spotlight.

Following the bombing of the DMZ, the US military has moved into Manhattan. Matty is there to chronicle their campaign. There's an aura of depression and inevitable finality to the series right now. Matty's recent actions have made him an outcast in the DMZ, and he isn't welcomed much more warmly by his military companions. And yet, it seems there may still be hope for Matty yet. Before the end, Wood delivers a new twist and suggests things aren't quite as bleak as they seem. Wood also deserves credit for continuing to make Matty an identifiable lead, if not necessarily a sympathetic one. Given what the character is guilty of, that's probably the most that an be expected at this point.

Riccardo Burchielli returns for this arc to illustrate a far different and more battered DMZ than the one readers have grown used to. The visual tone of the issue varies quite a bit from sequence to sequence and depending on the setting. Colorist Jeremy Cox brightens the book's palette at times, but rather than bringing cheer to the proceedings it only reinforces the impending sense of doom that surrounds this vision of Manhattan.

DMZ has less than a year to go. After so many months of pleasant diversion and deep character studies, Wood has begun the final push towards the finale. Things should only grow more interesting from here on out.